DAMASCUS: More than than 350,000 people have been killed in the conflict in Syria, which has been ongoing for 10 years, the United Nations said.
“We assess this figure of 350,209 as statistically sound, based as it is on rigorous work,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet in Geneva.
“But it is not – and should not be seen as – a complete number of conflict-related killings in Syria… It indicates a minimum verifiable number, and is certainly an under-count of the actual number of killings,” she said.
The UN statistical analysis indicated that the actual number of people killed between March 2011, when the uprising started in Syria, and March 2021 was actually higher.
It added that in many cases, however, there was a lack of information or documentation of the deaths at all.
“Our numbers include only those people identifiable by their full name, with an established date of death, and who died in an identified governorate,” the report said.
According to the UN, more than 27,000 children have died in the conflict so far.
“Tragically, there are also many other victims who left behind no witnesses or documentation as to their deaths, and whose stories we have not yet been able to uncover,” said Bachelet.
Six months ago, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a watchdog documenting the violence in Syria, counted 388,000 fatalities,including 117,000 civilians.
Forces loyal to president Bashar al-Assad currently control about 70per cent of Syria’s territory, an area home to about 40 per cent of the population, the UN has said. — dpa
